change:healthcare CEO Releases 'My Healthcare is Killing Me'

Co-authors practical, how-to book to help consumers traverse today's frustrating American healthcare maze

I initially intended the book to help newly hired employees of our company better understand the healthcare industry and what we do

Nashville, Tenn. (PRWEB) September 24, 2008

American consumers who've felt confused navigating their healthcare and healthcare insurance now have a compass to point them through the morass -- a new book that guides them in simple language through the American healthcare system.

Written by Robert Hendrick, Christopher Parks and Katrina Welty, three authors who share what they know about the American healthcare system, the book simplifies complex issues such as "quality vs. cost," "multiple insurances," "managing your healthcare" and "comparing health plans" in a sometimes tongue-in-cheek ways.

"I initially intended the book to help newly hired employees of our company better understand the healthcare industry and what we do," lead author Robert Hendrick said. "But with more of healthcare's cost being pushed onto consumers' shoulders, we felt these practical tools needed to get into the public's hands to help them deal with their personal healthcare."

The company Hendrick references is change:healthcare , a consumerism informatics start-up founded in 2007 with fellow author Christopher Park. Its genesis stemmed from Park's loss of both parents from cancer.

Unable to make heads or tails of the mountain of medical bills that accompanied their care, Parks developed an online service he called MedBillManager, which helped consumers track and manage their medical billing paperwork.

Today, the bill management tool and company have evolved into one ushering in a new consumerism long missing from the healthcare industry and helping employees improve their lives while companies improve their bottom lines. Copies of "My Healthcare is Killing Me" are now being given to every change:healthcare business client for employee distribution.

"We just want to see consumers implement the book's lessons and live a better life," Hendrick said. "More transparency in this industry and consumers taking greater personal control of their healthcare is satisfaction enough."